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Griselda - Opera

Author Sabrina

Published on: September 29, 2024

An unfair test of love and Vivaldi's mad virtuoso vocal fireworks embellished with a gallant style. Griselda is presented by The Royal Danish Theatre and Concerto Copenhagen in Denmark for the first time ever.

For the first time ever, the Royal Danish Theatre and Concerto Copenhagen present Vivaldi's opera Griselda. The story of King Gualtiero of Thessaly, who marries the poor shepherdess 'Griselda'. The people are against marriage, so the king subjects Griselda to a series of trials to test her love.

Although most of us today know the composer of The Four Seasons for his many instrumental works, Antonio Vivaldi also made a name for himself as an opera composer in his time. In addition to composing music, he also acted as impresario and manager for both himself and his singers, and he had a clear strategy. By using his background and network as a pedagogue and teacher, Vivaldi found talented but younger (and therefore cheaper) singers at the start of their careers, avoiding the exorbitantly high fees of superstars and castrati.

Vivaldi's virtuosic and highly charged music, composed for new, young singers with sharp techniques and good acting skills, struck a chord with audiences, and Vivaldi's operas enjoyed considerable success throughout most of Italy - also commercially. "Griselda" premiered at the Teatro San Samuele on May 18, 1735. Always in tune with the trends of the time, Vivaldi combines and contrasts frenzied virtuoso vocal fireworks with the new galant style, which is more simple, supple and melodically carried.

In the story of Griselda, taken from the Decameron, the heroine is subjected to the most horrific sadistic trials. Traditionally, Griselda is portrayed as penitent and patient, but in Vivaldi's opera, she rages against the injustices inflicted upon her.

In a series of spectacular arias intended for Vivaldi's fiery protégé, Anna Giró, Vivaldi demonstrates an extraordinarily virtuosic use of fermatas and pauses. "Griselda" also contains some of Vivaldi's most virtuosic and well-known arias - especially "Agitata de due venti".

For the Danish premiere, strong international voices are on the cast list. Mezzo-soprano Noa Beinart, a member of the Vienna State Opera ensemble, is the sorely tested Griselda, and internationally sought-after Norwegian soprano Mari Eriksmoen can be seen in the role of Costanza.

The performances of "Griselda" in 1735 were an outstanding success, thanks to Vivaldi and his young stars - and we hope to recreate the success in 2025 on Danish soil.

Warm up for the premiere and listen to the music here. 

About Vivaldi and Opera 

Although most of us today probably know the composer of "The Four Seasons" for his many instrumental works, Antonio Vivaldi also made a name for himself as an opera composer in his time. His operatic debut took place in 1713 in Vicenza with "Ottone in villa" (which Concerto Copenhagen performed during the Copenhagen Opera Festival in 2014). This debut marked the start of Vivaldi's prolific career in 'dramma per musica' - a potentially lucrative genre as it was extremely popular with audiences. Vivaldi also had commercial ambitions with his operas. As well as composing the music, he also acted as impresario and manager for both himself and his singers, and he had a clear strategy. By using his background and network as a pedagogue and teacher, Vivaldi found talented but younger (and therefore cheaper) singers at the start of their careers, avoiding the exorbitantly high fees of superstars and castrati. He also seems to have preferred singers who also had acting talent. Vivaldi's virtuosic and highly charged music, composed for new, young singers with sharp techniques and good acting skills, struck a chord with audiences, and Vivaldi's operas enjoyed considerable success throughout most of Italy - also commercially.

But Vivaldi's forward-thinking, effective music, unbridled commercial ambitions and generally flamboyant attitude also made him unwelcome in parts of Italy - especially in Venice, where the opera and theater scene was dominated by conservative tastes and aristocratic families. Yet it was in Venice where it was most lucrative and exciting to make opera, as the largest and most modern theaters were located here. In 1735, one of Vivaldi's main opponents in Venice, the librettist and theater man Domenico Lalli, retired. He was associated with the Grimani family, who owned several theaters in Venice, all of which had been running at a significant loss for some time. The Grimani family had observed Vivaldi's artistic and financial success and decided to give Vivaldi a chance.

"Griselda" premiered at the Teatro San Samuele on May 18, 1735. Always in tune with the trends of the time, Vivaldi combines and contrasts frenzied virtuoso vocal fireworks with the new galant style, which is more simple, agile and melodically carried. In the story of Griselda, taken from the Decameron, the heroine is subjected to the most horrific sadistic trials. Traditionally, Griselda is portrayed as penitent and patient, but here she rages against the injustices inflicted upon her. In a series of spectacular arias intended for Vivaldi's fiery protégé, Anna Giró, Vivaldi demonstrates an extraordinarily virtuosic use of fermatas and pauses. The sudden moments of silence were charged with passion, defiance and emotion by Giró's acting skills. "Griselda" also contains some of Vivaldi's most virtuosic and well-known arias - especially "Agitata de due venti", Constance's coloratura aria at the beginning of Act 2, which the world-famous mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli often uses as an encore in her concerts. Find it on YouTube!

The performances of "Griselda" in 1735 were an outstanding success, and thanks to Vivaldi and his young stars, the Grimani family and their theater empire were back on solid financial ground.